Keeping Secrets
by redcakeMaine
Summary: It's Harry's fifth year at Hogwarts and Umbridge is giving him handfuls of detentions. With nosy friends and two protective guardians will he be able to keep the blood quill a secret? Changed to T rating just to be on the safe side. Complete!
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

**BTW: In this story Peter was captured in the Prisoner of Azkaban and Harry lives with Sirius and Remus. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling does.**

Harry winced as the frigid water hit his hand. He wanted nothing more than to pull it out, but making sure that the wound was not infected was key to no one finding out.

Umbridge had been giving Harry detentions left and right the whole year. To anyone who asked, Umbridge made him write lines. An annoying, but not particularly dangerous task. If one looked closer however, that would not be the case. Since the very beginning Umbridge had been making Harry write line, only these lines were written in Harry's very own blood. Harry had looked it up, finding that the item she was using was called a blood quill. It was an illegal artifact, dangerous territory for someone who worked at the Ministry.

Harry jerked his hand out of the sink as soon as he heard distant voices.

"I just think that maybe we should wait for him to talk to us before making a decision like that."

"Yes, but you know how he is. That is never going to happen! It's like telling a penguin he has wings and then expecting him to fly. If we want results we're going to have to set up guidelines."

"Oh come on, Padfoot, he's not that bad. You've got to give him a little slack. He came to us with Cho, didn't he? If we do this than he is never going to be able to trust us again."

Harry did a double take. Padfoot? Cho? It was at times like these that Harry doubted he had any luck at all. He had been trying to avoid his guardians since the start of his detentions, not wanting to accidentally spill what had been happening with umbridge. He wasn't sure why it was such a bad thing, exactly, he just felt that they would be ashamed if they found out.

Flattening himself against the wall, Harry held his breath and closed his eyes, hoping against hope that neither man would have the sudden urge to use the bathroom. The fates must have felt sorry for him and he soon heard that the voices were getting quieter and quieter.

"This is different than Cho, Moony. I say we ask him about it tomorrow right after dinner. Then we…"

The voices not completely gone, Harry slipped out of the boy's lavatory and began at a brisk pace back to the Gryffindor common room. However, he had not even made it ten steps when he heard running footsteps and Sirius's voice call: "Hang on Moony! I think I dropped something."

Harry looked around frantically. In the dark corridor there was nowhere to hide. In an act of desperation he spun around and tried to run around the corner, but it was too late. Sirius rounded the corner from behind him. The man's eyes widened at the sight of his godson and he stopped in his tracks.

"Harry?" he asked tentatively "What are you doing up?"

"I...er...hi, Sirius," Harry mumbled lamely.

"Shouldn't you be in bed?" Sirius said, worry and suspicion written clearly on his face.

"Yeah, yeah… You know what? I think I'll, um, head up there right now. See you later!" and with that Harry turned and started walking away from Sirius. The man caught-on quickly, however, and managed to grab Harry's arm before he could go any further.

"You were in detention again, weren't you? I can't believe that hag would keep you for this long. It's unacceptable! I think I'll have a little chat with her tomorrow about it," Sirius stated.

"No! Er, I mean, it's fine, Sirius. It isn't all that bad, I swear." Harry knew he was lying through his teeth, but he had this weird feeling that he shouldn't tell anyone… not even Sirius.

The older man sighed and ran a hand through his shoulder length black hair.

"It's just that.. I think…" Sirius shook his head. He was not usually at a loss for words. "You know that you can talk to me, right Harry?" he started again, "Remus and I will be happy to listen to whatever you have to say,"

Harry rolled his eyes. Both men had already told him this at least twenty times. It wasn't that he didn't want to confide in them, he just felt like he couldn't. Like something was holding him back. Not to mention that twelve years at the Dursley's had taught him to keep his feeling pent up inside.

Noticing his godfather's worried expression, Harry quickly put a smile on his lips, hoping that in the dark corridor Sirius wouldn't be able to tell it was fake.

"Yeah, I know. It's just that with O.W.L.'s and stuff things have gotten a bit hectic."

Sirius nodded.

"I remember fifth year in that sense too. In fact, when I was here, to relieve the stress your dad and I used to-"

"Sirius? Have you found what you're looking for? Wait, Harry? Isn't it past curfew?" Godfather and Godson had been too distracted to notice Remus' approaching footsteps.

Sirius turned to Harry. "Yes I believe it is past curfew. We can talk more about this tomorrow. Would you like us to walk you back?"

Harry shook his head. "I'll be fine, thanks. See you!"

Walking away Harry wondered what he was going to say to his guardians tomorrow. Surely they would ask. He could tell them he had been setting up a prank of sorts, but they knew him better than that. Of course he could just tell them about the blood quill and be done with it… No. He wasn't even close to ready to tell them about that. Harry would just have to come up with something believable by tomorrow. It couldn't be that hard… Right?

Back at the boy's bathroom Sirius narrowed his eyes and glared at Remus.

"You call that normal?" he demanded. Remus winced at his tone. "Well, he is a teenager, his hormones might just be acting up…" Remus replied weakly. But he knew Sirius was right. They would talk to Harry tomorrow, get the full story. Because whatever was bothering him, he definitely wasn't coming to them anytime soon.

**A/N: Hi! This is my first ever fic! So please, read, review and tell me what you think. Should I keep going? Sincerely, Ingeyi**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

**A/N: This chapter is dedicated to princessariellover876 and Angii19739. Thank you so much! You made my day!**

By the time breakfast had rolled around the next day Harry was dead on his feet from staying up all night. He had been finishing up a potions essay, but got distracted by the possibilities of what Sirius and Remus would say once they found out about the full extent of his detentions. That didn't mean that even with his mind elsewhere he missed the worried glances shared between his two best friends.

"I'm fine guys, really. I just stayed up a little too late finishing my potions essay…" Ron snorted.

" 'A little late'? You look like you could drop dead at any second, mate!"

"Ron!" Hermione hissed "Stop being so rude!" Ron looked exasperated.

"What did I do now?" he cried. Hermione ignored him though and turned to Harry.

"You've just got to pay more attention to your body, Harry. Too much stress can wear a person out, and you don't want to have to quit quidditch, do you?" Hermione's eyes widened and she covered her mouth with her hand. It took a while for it to sink in and once it did Harry narrowed his eyes at the witch.

"No one said anything about quitting quidditch. Who told you that?"

"Well, nobody really _told_ me… and I don't know for sure… they were in the hallway and-" Harry cut her off.

"Hermione, who said that?" he snarled. By this point Hermione's eyes could not be seen under her thick, bushy hair.

"Professor Black and Professor Lupin," she whispered.

There was a moment of silence before Harry stood up quickly and stalked out of the Great Hall. It was an awkward scene: steam practically coming out of Harry's ears while Hermione looked close to tears and Ron was looking nervously between the two, trying to decide which one to console. At the staff table this didn't go unnoticed and Sirius ran after Harry while Remus went straight to Ron and Hermione to find out what had happened.

Out in the corridor, Harry was racing to his next class which happened to be transfiguration. He worried that if he stopped moving he would break something. How could they do this to him? Quidditch was the one thing that was keeping him sane this year. If they took that away he would most likely be reduced to a blubbering mess. If he had been thinking about talking to Sirius and Remus before, it was out of the question now.

"Harry!" It was Sirius's voice. "Harry wait, stop!" Harry kept on going.

"Prongslet!" Harry picked up the pace (if that was possible without breaking into a run), causing Sirius to become impatient. "Harry James Potter! I said stop!" This Harry reacted to and he turned around, face flushed and angry.

"What do you want." It was more a statement than a question.

Sirius ignored his tone and began to reply, "All I want is for you to take a deep breath and tell me what in Merlin's beard happened in there to make you so upset."

Harry's face got redder and his eyes darkened. "Yeah, well '_all I want_' is for you to tell me why you thought I'd never find out! I can't believe you would do this to me! You of all people should know how much it means to me!"

A look of confusion planted itself firmly on Sirius' face. "Harry, I don't have the faintest idea what you're talking about."

"You're really going to try to deny it?" Harry let out a cry of frustration. "Fine, be that way. I have to get to class," and with that he jogged off, intent on putting as much space in between him and his godfather as possible.

Sirius leaned up against the wall, rubbing his temples tiredly. Why in the world did teenagers have to be _so_ confusing?

Back in the great hall Remus had begun to piece together what had happened. Unfortunately he could do nothing about it since he had to get ready for his History of Magic class. He had comforted himself with the realization that he would be able to speak with Sirius at lunch. Hopefully getting started on fixing this mess if not completely setting things right.

Harry looked distastefully at the heavy book they were supposed to transform into a birdhouse. He hadn't the slightest idea how he was expected to perform such a task, yet Hermione had already managed to transfigure three perfect examples that had even Professor McGonagall impressed.

He groaned and lay his head on the table, for the first time noticing how comfortable the polished wood was. It wasn't long before his eyes had drifted close and the classroom voices had faded away to nothing...

"Harry?" Harry waved his hand in the direction of Hermione's voice.

"Go 'way. M' tryin' to sleep…"

Ron stepped in. "Harry, we're going to be late for Defense against the Dark Arts." At this Harry snapped his eyes open. Being late would just mean one more excuse for Umbridge to give him detention.

Harry wiped at his eyes and grabbed for his book bag. "Let's go," he said, still a bit groggy. Hermione and Ron followed him out of the classroom to Defense class. When they arrived Umbridge was sitting at her desk. She looked up at them and put on an overly cheerful smile.

"Wonderful! I have a most exciting lesson planned today! Please, sit down."

Harry rolled his eyes inwardly. 'Exciting lesson'? This was bound to be awful.

**A/N: Thank you all for reading my story! I have to admit that it's not my best work. Hopefully you still like it though. Please, before you leave, Review! It really helps my writing when I get feedback. Thank you all again! Ingeyi**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** **Alright, sorry that this chapter took so long. I have an explantation though. I just got a beta! Thank you stars90 for beta reading this chapter for me. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter... a girl can dream though...**

**Chapter Three**

Harry scowled at the peas on his plate as they continued to openly defy his mind's commands. If the boy-who-lived was supposed to be such an all-powerful wizard why couldn't he make a few measly peas disappear?

Beside him Ron had just managed to finish his fourth plate of food. After washing it all down with some pumpkin juice he glanced at Harry's plate.

"You going to finish that?"

Harry shook his head and pushed his un-eaten dinner towards Ron.

"Go ahead."

Ron happily obliged while Hermione looked at him in disgust.

"Honestly, Ron! Stop being such a pig!" Spewing food, Ron replied, "Whgmefer, Hemneghe."

"Ew! Ron, that is absolutely disgusting," Harry said. Hermione turned on him, eyes narrowed.

"Don't try to draw the attention from yourself. You've eaten barely anything all day. You're going to come down with something!"

Harry sighed. "Hermione, I'm not sure skipping dinner counts as barely eating all day. Thank you for the concern but I'm fine." Hermione harrumphed and went back to the book she had been reading.

Glad to be rid of the attention, Harry stole a glance at the staff table. He wasn't surprised to see Sirius and Remus with their heads together, chatting quietly. The two were no doubt talking about the day's events, trying to decide the right course of action. Harry quickly turned his head away when Remus looked up to find him staring.

Admittedly, he wasn't quite as mad as before. He was nowhere near forgiving them, mind you, but now thinking about them without exploding wasn't an issue. He was nowhere near forgiving them, mind you, but now thinking about them without exploding wasn't an issue.

Before long it was time to go to everyone's respective dormitories, or in Harry's case detention.

He could tell that Sirius and Remus had wanted to talk to him but he wasn't really in the mood to hear anything they had to say.

Harry told Ron and Hermione he would meet them in the common room later and pushed past the exiting crowd toward Umbridge's office.

Upon arrival, Harry knocked on the door and was surprised to be greeted by silence. He briefly wondered if she had forgotten and already gone off to bed when he heard her beckoning him inside.

"Ah, Mr. Potter, I'm glad your on time. Now, you know the drill. Please begin." She went back to her work, showing she was done with the conversation.

Harry put his book bag down and sat down behind a desk set up in the corner of the room. On it was a piece of parchment and an ordinary looking quill.

The quill, of course, was anything but ordinary. It was a blood quill. The same quill that had carved the vile words 'I must not tell lies' into the soft skin on the back of Harry's hand.

Resigned to his fate, Harry picked up the quill.

_I must not tell lies_.

The wizard flexed his hand. _God, that hurt._

Glancing up at the toad responsible for this pain, he found her to be smiling at him, an odd, impish-like gleam in her eye.

Finding the picture unsettling, Harry snapped his gaze back to the parchment in front of him, only to make his stomach flip-flop. The glistening blood on the page make him want to throw-up.

Harry shook his head. He couldn't let Unbridge have the satisfaction, couldn't let her win. So, lowering his hand gingerly to the parchment, Harry began to write again.

Several hours (and quite a few parchment pieces) later, Harry's hand was well beyond the red, inflamed form it had taken before and was now literally bleeding. Bleeding _heavily_ one might add.

Harry was finding it hard to concentrate over the nausea and massive headache, often forgetting where he was for a few moments before his head would begin to throb again.

Umbridge undoubtedly noticed this.

"I see that the blood quill has taken it's toll on you. Hopefully this will teach you to be honest in the future. If not… well let's just say my door is always open," the end of the sentence was punctuated with a small giggle.

Harry wanted to scream at her, but was afraid that if he opened his mouth he would spew out what little food he'd had for dinner. He was pretty sure that retching on one of Umbridge's framed cats would just earn him another detention.

Stumbling to his feet, Harry grabbed for his book bag, only to find himself tumbling to the ground, not expecting it to be so heavy.

"Mr. Potter!" Umbridge shrieked. "I'd like to keep my floor clean, thank you very much! Now, if you would please make your way to the door without staining my furniture red!"

Harry used the wall as a brace as he got to his feet. Suddenly his stomach gurgled unpleasantly. _Uh oh!Too fast!_ Harry lurched toward the door, desperate to find the nearest bathroom.

The green-eyed wizard wobbled down the corridors, tripping on his own feet occasionally. To an innocent bystander he might've looked like a lad who had stayed in the pub a bit too long.

Finally Harry made it to the boy's toilets. Reaching a stall he threw himself down on the ground and put his head over the toilet. He heaved until he was sure there must be nothing left in his body.

That done, Harry now turned the last of his energy toward his hand and was shocked to see it still bleeding. Gingerly, he began to wash it off in the sink, relieved when the heavy flow turned into a light trickle under the warm water. Grabbing some tissue paper, Harry wrapped his hand up, vowing to change the dressing to something a bit more durable once he got the chance.

It was then that Harry's predicament really caught up with him. He leaned against the sink for support, resting his forehead on the cool glass of a mirror. Exhausted, he didn't hear the approaching footsteps.

"Potter? I should have known, Only you would think you could get away with staying up past curfew."

Snape.

Throat sore and body aching, Harry groaned. Could this night get any worse?

**A/N: My first half-hearted cliff hanger! Woo hoo! I feel like a real writer now. Thank you all for reading! If you liked it please review, it motivates me to update faster.**

**A special thanks to Marshymello and LM Ryder the Batty Bat for being my first two reviewers! I really appreciate it!**

**Also, I'm going to be stretching the comfort zone of my writer's ability in this next chapter so just be warned that it might take a little long to update. I hope you understand! Thank you and please Review!**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

**A/N: ****Hey Ya'll! Sorry this update took so long. I had camp and didn't have access to a computer. **

**The format is a little weird, I don't know what happened there. Anyway, thank you to my amazing beta and I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

Remus lay his head back against the back of the couch. The day had been hectic

and his best mate pacing a groove in the floor wasn't helping.

"Sirius, please. Worrying will only make matters worse. We have to stay calm."

Sirius looked at him incredulously.

"Stay calm?" Sirius threw his hands up in the air as he began to pace again.

"Remus, what if he's in trouble? What if he needs us and we aren't there? I promised I'd

keep him safe, Moony!"

Remus knew he was referring to the moments and days following Peter's

capture. It had been a wonderful yet hard time for all of them and both of them still

remembered it as if it were yesterday.

"Harry, I don't know if you know this, but I'm your godfather."

"Yeah, I know."

"Well, I just thought that if-when my name is cleared- you might want to , well...

er... come stay with me..."

"Stay with you?" Harry was shocked.

"You're welcome to stay with the Dursleys, I don't want to pressure you, I just

thought that maybe-"

"Are you kidding me? I can't imagine anything better! I'd do anything to get away

from the Dursleys."

Their conversation was cut off by a frightened whimper from Remus. All memory

of the talk was then forgotten as the night progressed. By the next morning the chances

of Sirius' name being cleared was zilch... until Crookshanks strutted into the hospital

wing, a familiar looking rat in his mouth.

By the next day, Sirius had been contacted and Fudge had given the dog

Animagus his sincere apologies and deposited a fair amount of galleons into the Black

family vault. He then took his leave to sort out the press frenzy that was soon to come.

Finally, after endless meetings and paperwork, Harry and Sirius had been left

"Are you sure that you'd really rather live with me than with your relatives?" Sirius

asked for the thousandth time.

Harry snorted at the absurdness of the question. "Positive."

Sirius smiled. "I have a feeling we're going to have a lot of fun, you and me," he

said, slinging an arm around Harry's shoulder.

"If my bad luck doesn't kill me first," Harry had meant it as a joke but Sirius' face

became solemn at the comment.

"Nothing is going to kill you while I'm around. I want you to know that I'll always

be there for you. And that's a promise, okay?

"Yeah, okay."

They were silent for a moment. Then: "Oh, by the way, I was wondering if you

wouldn't mind Remus staying with us. Him being without a steady home and all..."

Thinking of how much Harry liked Professor Lupin, Harry nodded his head

vigorously. "That would be splendid!"

Sirius beamed.

Remus rubbed his hand over his face. He was worried Sirius was going to have

a nervous breakdown if he didn't calm down quickly. Remus was about to force a

calming draught down Sirius' throat when a bright Patronus bounded into the room,

saving him the trouble.

It moved to the center of the room and sat down lazily in the air.

"We've found Harry. Meet in my office. -Albus" The whispery voice filled the small

quarters.

Immediately, Sirius ran to the door.

"Come on, Moony!" he snapped, ushering his friend out of the room.

The duo hurried to Dumbledore's office, and reached the gargoyle, panting.

Remus said "Fizzing whizbee!" and the gargoyle immediately hopped aside.

To say that Sirius ran up the stairs would be an understatement. He practically

flew! When he reached the top he didn't even bother to knock on the door, simply

throwing it open.

"Where's Harry? Is he alright? Is he-" A small voice cut off his rant.

"I'm fine, Sirius."

From the corner of the room Snape scoffed. "You're hardly 'fine', Potter."

Sirius ignored him however, and threw his arms around Harry. Call it

overprotective but Sirius didn't think he was ever going to let go.

**A/N: Thanks for reading! Please Review! It motivates me and helps to get updates up faster! Thanks!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

**A/N:** Hey everyone! I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while. I didn't get any reviews for that last chapter and was feeling a little down (nudge nudge, wink wink). I'm thinking of changing the name of this story so if you have any suggestions then PM me or tell me in a review. Thanks!

Harry let Sirius hold him for a few moments before gently pushing him away. He

smiled encouragingly and turned to Dumbledore who had started to speak.

"Sirius, I assure you that no permanent damage has been done to Harry,

although a sleeping draught wouldn't do any harm." Dumbledore raised his hand as

Harry began to protest. "Now, if we can proceed to the part where we find out why

Severus found young Harry nearly passed out in the boy's lavatory." Dumbledore

nodded suggestively at Snape.

"I was walking to my quarters after having finished grading my papers. It

was then that I heard a retching sound while passing the boy's bathroom. I went to

investigate and found none other than Potter. Weak and ill in all his glory."

"I would've been fine if you hadn't interfered!" Harry protested.

"Oh, I'm sure. Right after you passed out on the floor!" Snape sneered.

"Even if I had, I would rather that than have help from a cave-dwelling dungeon

bat!" Harry spat.

Snape now looked murderous. "Potter, it's just like you to act like a complete

moron to someone who has nearly saved your life! I can make your life miserable, you

know." Snape's nose was now inches from Harry's face.

Sirius quickly threw his arm protectively across Harry's chest.

"Do not threaten my godson."

Remus put a hand on Sirius' arm. It immediately had a calming effect and Sirius

took a step back.

"Gentlemen," Dumbledore spoke, "we will only be gracing each other's presence for a bit longer. If

we could all please refrain from tearing each other apart during that time it would make this meeting much more bearable."

Harry suddenly became very interested with the dirt that had collected on his

trainers. "Sorry, sir"

"It's quite alright, Harry. But if we could please get back to Severus'

explanation..."

"That was it, Albus. I then escorted the boy here, and you know the rest." Snape

finished, all the while glaring between Harry and Sirius.

"Very well," Dumbledore turned to the raven haired boy. "Harry, would you care

to enlighten us with an explanation behind these events?"

Harry paled as everyone in the room turned to look at him.

"It's nothing, really. I was...feeling sick and was making my way to the hospital

wing." Harry mumbled uselessly.

"If that was the case, Potter, what is your excuse for that." Snape pointed a

gnarled and knobbly finger at Harry. Following the potion master's gaze, Harry found

himself staring numbly at his wrapped left hand. Thin red streaks poked through the

surface of the tissues he had used as a makeshift bandage for his wounded hand.

"T-that? Oh, I just...er...fell on it during, um, quidditch." His stuttering convinced

no one, though.

"So you wouldn't mind if I take a look." Snape raised his eyebrows and without

waiting for an answer, yanked off the tissue paper. Reaching for Harry's hand he took it

in his grasp and brought it closer so he could get a better look.

Harry's heart began to beat faster and he tried to wrench his hand out of the

man's grasp, but Snape held firm.

What he saw was shocking. Carved into the back of the boys hand were five

words: I must not tell lies. The cuts were red and inflamed and dried blood painted the

rest of the hand. The last word: lies, was still actually bleeding slightly.

Snape had to bite his lip to keep himself from gasping in shock. He had no doubt

in his mind that this had been painful. Composing himself he looked searchingly at

Harry.

"Well Potter, what do we have here? After all, this is most certainly not a simple

quidditch injury."

Sirius worried voice saved Harry from answering. "What is it?" He pushed Snape

aside and took Harry's hand in his own. His face automatically paled.

Fearing what was to come, Harry tried to console his godfather.

"Sirius, I-"

"Harry, what happened? You didn't," Sirius looked into Harry's eyes uncertainly.

"You didn't...do this, did you?" The man was practically pleading.

Harry was shocked that Sirius would think that of him. He looked at Remus to

see if he thought the same thing. His green orbs met worried and concerned brown and

he realized that both men were wondering the same thing.

"I would never! Why would you even-" Sirius cut him off.

"Why didn't you say something? If I would of known you were hurting we could

have helped..." he trailed off, seeming to zone out and Remus stepped in.

"You don't have to be ashamed, Harry. We'll be there for you no matter what."

Now Harry was getting frustrated. They were jumping to the conclusion that he

had cut himself. It hurt him to know they thought that little of him.

"Stop! Just let me speak, will you?" Harry screeched. Both of his Guardians

turned to look at him.

"I didn't do it to myself, okay? It was someone else." Remus still looked unsure

but Sirius was now on alert. If someone had hurt his Godson there would be hell to pay.

"Then who? Just tell me and we'll fix it." Sirius said. Harry looked

towards the ceiling. They were going to find out anyway, might as well get

it over with now. Taking a deep breath he closed his eyes and blurted:

"Umbridgegavemeabunchofdetentionsandwassortofmakingwritelineswiththisquillthatma

demewritewithmyownblood."

Sirius eyes widened, Remus' forehead creased, Dumbledore looked thoughtful,

and Snape simply rolled his eyes.

Remus blinked. "Come again?"

"Umbridge was giving me these detentions and-"

"Umbridge! I knew it! When I get my hands on her she is going to wish she had

never put a finger on my godson!" Sirius blurted, jumping from his seat.

"Sirius, please refrain from commenting until after Harry is done." Dumbledore

suggested calmly.

Sirius blushed and sat back down.

"Sorry. Harry, continue."

"Well, she make me write lines with this quill that didn't use ink. It used my

blood." the last part was whispered and everyone in the room had to lean in to hear it.

Dumbledore stroked his beard. "A blood quill. An illegal artifact, surprising for

a Ministry official." He and Snape began to talk quietly about what should be done,

leaving Harry, Sirius, and Remus to themselves.

No one said anything for a few moments and Harry began to shift uncomfortably in the tense silence. Then, before he

could react, both of his guardians had thrown their arms around him, embracing him

tightly. Harry stiffened, not to go unnoticed to the two animagus holding him.

"Harry, why didn't you tell us? How many times have we told you that you can

trust us? We're here for you." Remus lightly chastised.

Harry shrugged from inside their arms.

"I didn't tell anyone. I don't know why, I just..." thinking back Harry realized why

he had held back from telling his guardians "I-I just didn't want you to pity me."

"Oh, Harry," Sirius let out a shaky breath and pulled back from the hug, pulling

Remus back with him. Holding onto Harry's shoulders he looked into the boy's eyes.

"We don't pity you and we never will. You're like a son to me. I love you." From beside

Sirius, Remus nodded.

"Nothing will ever change that, kiddo."

Harry smiled into the faces of Sirius and Remus and for the first time in his life

said, "I-I love you too."

**A/N:** Soooooo, what did you think? Good? Horrible? Readable (thanks to my awesome beta!)?

I'm thinking this will probably be my last chapter, although I may be persuaded to do an epolouge. *Nods suggestively towards the review button* Anyway, thank you all who have read my story so far, and a special thanks to all who have reviewed or even followed.


	6. Epilogue

A/N: Hey! Sorry I haven't updated in a while! I had sudden inspiration and this is what I came up with. Dedicated to Imaginer.012! P.S. This chapter is un-beta'd, so watch out: bad spelling and grammar ahead!

Harry bounced excitedly up and down on the balls of his feet. He couldn't believe this was finally happening!

Harry , Remus Lupin, and Harry's godfather Sirius Black, were currently seated at an oak desk in a small office inside the Ministry of Magic. The office was painted a light silver with blue trim (the current occupant had obviously been a Ravenclaw). Fancy diplomas hung framed on the walls, along with pictures of smiling families and children.

Sitting across from the three men was a petite, blonde haired woman. Her hazel eyes were looking irritably at Harry, trying to keep calm and un-bothered but undoubtedly failing. She had had a very hectic day afterall!

"Mr. Potter!" she finally burst. "Would you please refrain from jumping around so much. I can't concentrate."

Harry smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, Mrs. Hedger."

Mrs. Hedger nodded and turned to Sirius and Remus. Shuffling through her papers, she found the one she was looking for.

"Mr. Black, would you please sign here? And Mr. Lupin, right here, please."

The men signed the papers and handed them back to Mrs. Hedger. She looked over them briefly, making sure their signatures were in the correct spots. She nodded her approval and put the papers into a large manilla folder to her left. Then Harry was once again the center of her attention.

"Before we proceed, Mr. Potter," she said "do you have a preference over your name? Would you like to keep 'Potter' or change-maybe add on-'Black? The choice is yours."

Feeling three pairs of eyes on him, Harry blushed. He swallowed nervously and looked at Sirius and then Remus.

"I was kinda hoping I could keep my name. It's one of the only things, um, of my parents I have left. If thats okay with you, you know. . ." He trailed off no longer sure of himself.

Harry had been thinking about it for a while and had decided that when the question came up

(as he knew it would) he would proclaim that he wanted to keep the name 'Potter' and carry on his parents legacy from him to his children to his children's children. It hadn't exactly gone according to plan.. In fact Harry's "proclamation" had been quite pitiful.

Remus's voice brought Harry out of his stupor.

"Harry, if you'd like to keep your last name than we're not going to stop you. As Mrs. Hedger pointed out, this is your choice." Remus soothed. Sirius put on a hand on Harry's shoulder to signal his agreement and Mrs. Hedger nodded happily.

"Alright then, Mr. Potter, if you could just sign one more time right here, I'll just get these papers sent and you can be on your way."

Grabbing the nearest pen, Harry sloppily scribbled his name onto the provided line and slid it back to the blonde haired woman, who nodded.

"Well, it looks like were done here. The official statement will be owled to you in a few day, once it's processed. A social worker will also be stopping in a few times in the next few months to ensure everything's going smoothly. I hope you have a wonderful afternoon!" Mrs. Hedger exclaimed.

She shook Remus's hand followed by Sirius's, and attempted to give Harry an awkward fist-bump. Then she led them to the door and ushered them out, waving before she shut the door.

Out in the hall Sirius turned to Harry.

"Well, now that that's done, what would you like to do? Something special for a special day." Sirius prompted. Harry shrugged.

"I don't know… bowling, maybe?"

Remus stepped in. "Bowling? Sounds fascinating!"

Sirius smiled and put an arm around Harry's shoulder. "Bowling it is!…whatever it is…"

Harry shifted uncomfortably in Sirius's embrace. Sirius automatically looked worried.

"What's wrong, kiddo?" He asked, forehead wrinkling.

Harry sighed. "Er, I was just wondering… now that it's all official, what should I call you?"

Sirius tilted his chin upwards, as if pondering the question deeply.

"Well, there are a few options. For example: Your Majesty, My King, Lord of the Galaxies… yes lots of possibilities."

Harry and Remus laughed.

"No, but seriously, what do you want me to call you?"

Sirius looked down at Harry fondly and leaned over to kiss the top of his head. "Kiddo, whatever you call me is fine. You could stick with Sirius or something different, it's all up to you. I'm sure your godfather would agree." He looked to Remus for confirmation. Remus nodded.

"Godfather approved." He joked.

They all stood there for a second, soaking in the moment. It was Sirius who broke the silence.

"Come one then, this place is making me depressed, and I don't think we're wanted here." he jerked his head towards Mrs. Hedger's office door where they could all see one eye peering through the peephole, it's intensity brutal. "By the way. was I the only one who notices how much she nodded?' Sirius continued. He bobbed his head for a few moments to prove his point. "She was like a human bobble-head!"

They all laughed, one (small) happy family.

As they walked out the door at the end of the hallway Sirius pulled Harry tighter and whispered, "I love you kiddo."

" I love you too… _Dad_."

**A/N: **Thank you all so much for reading my story! If you liked it please review! Also, I might do a sequel if I get a good prompt or idea for one. Thank you all sooo much! R&R


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